20-Minute Fitness A little bit of exercise goes a long, long way

20-Minute Fitness A little bit of exercise goes a long, long way

If you’re beating yourself up for not working out more or training harder, may I share some freakin’ awesome news courtesy of Gretchen Reynolds’ new book, The First 20 Minutes ($16.02 at Books-A-Million)? In it, the popular New York Times Phys Ed columnist explains that even a tiny smidgen of activity will provide massive benefits to your emotional and physical health. Yes, really.

Reynolds’ book debunks plenty of fitness myths (such as stretching is a must), and it’s extremely useful for both the athletic and the not-so-much. We talked to Reynolds, who shared more about what she’s learned since tackling this project.

Minutes a Day Matter

Although many of us use the terms “healthy” and “fit” interchangeably, Reynolds says that science shows that you can be healthy—as in active enough to give you long-term health benefits—without being Misty May-Treanor. Whew. One intriguing study reveals that 20 minutes of physical activity (even housecleaning or gardening) a week improved the moods of the participants. As for physical health, the author adds, “all you need to do is walk for 20 or 30 minutes most days of the week, and it will change your life and reduce your risk for disease.” You don’t even have to do the 20 minutes in a row. You can break them into smaller chunks.

However…

While activity is incredibly beneficial, even in small amounts, a total lack of activity is incredibly bad for you. “There is really clear evidence that being totally inactive [is detrimental].” Within 24 hours of no activity, our bodies start making changes at the genetic level. Unfortunately, “well over one-third of Americans get no activity, and it’s probably higher than that,” which is why she hopes her book will inspire people to get out there and just move—in any way, shape or form that they enjoy.

Exercising Won’t Help You Lose Weight

“If you don’t change your diet, exercise does not generally help people lose weight,” Reynolds says. “Exercise, whether it is light or strenuous, can increase your appetite,” so you have to control calories, too. Good news, though. Once you lose the weight, exercise will help you keep the weight off.

Make New Brain Cells

Another wonderful benefit of moving? Exercising will increase how many brain cells your body makes over your lifetime. “Walking appears to be really important for brain health,” Reynolds says. “It reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s and pushes back the age in which you have mild cognitive impairment.”

The Plight of the Active Couch Potato

Once you do your Zumba class or play your tennis match, you probably think you’re home free for the day, right? Not so fast. If you sit for hours in a row (even if you worked out that day), you’re doing your body a major disservice. Almost immediately if the big muscles in your legs and back are not moving, you start to get more fat going through the blood. It goes to your heart, your liver, your muscles and can lead to diabetes, heart disease and more.

The solution? “Stand up every 20 minutes,” our expert says. That’s it. Stand when you’re on the phone, stand when you’re reading (Reynolds bought a music stand and puts her papers on it), set your computer to ding every 20 minutes to remind you to walk around for two minutes, or download an app like Time Out Free for iPhone to get you up. That’s all it will take to offset the negative effects of sitting.

What do you do for activity? Do you go to the gym? Garden? Walk? Tell us in the comments section below!